The Austrian School of Economics

Paper Summary:

The paper looks at the history and major belief system of the Austrian School of Economics and discusses how it does not use mathematics or macroeconomics to analyze situations. The paper examines the school's political philosophies of how government and business interact, including its laissez-fare philosophy and its opposition to anti-trust regulations. The paper looks at the criticism of the Austrian School theories but notes that its political theories should be studied by every economist.

Outline:
Introduction
Background and History
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Although the Austrian School of Economics was not officially founded until 1871, many theories, especially about individual property rights and freedom to contract and trade went back to the 15th century. The School maintained popularity through the latter part of the 19th Century, but interest waned after 1920 through World War II. After one of its members received a Nobel Prize in 1974, there was a renewed interest in the Austrian School. While there is a renewed interest, some regard its theories as totally bogus. Much of that criticism is based on the fact that the Austrian School does not use mathematics, numbers or indexes to quantify their theories. Rather, the Austrian School looks at psychological reasons as to why economic principals come into play. The laissez-fare (hands off) philosophy of government regulation can be traced to the Austrian School of Economics which does not believe in anti-trust legislation."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dolan, E. 1976. The Foundations of Modern Austrian Economics Kansas City, Sheed and Ward, Inc. Retrieved March 20, 2007. <http://www.econlib.org/library/NPDBooks/Dolan/dlnFMA.html >
• Garrison, Roger W. Austrian Capital Theory And The Future of Macroeconomics Retrieved Mach 20, 2007. <http://www.auburn.edu/~garriro/b4mismac.htm>
• Houmanidis, L. and Leen. A. Austrian Economic Thought: Its Evolution And Its The Austrian Economist Website. Retrieved March 20, 2007. <http://austrianeconomists.typepad.com/>
• von Mises, Ludwig, 1984, The Historical Setting of the Austrian School of Economics. The Ludwig von Mises' Institute. Retrieved March 20, 2007. <http://www.mises.org/hsofase.asp>
• What is Austrian Economics? The Ludwig von Mises' Institute Retrieved March 20, 2007. <http://www.mises.org/etexts/austrian.asp>

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